Trump to NATO allies: “Cowards”. London grants bases for raids on Iran | EUROtoday

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Donald Trump lashes out and insults NATO allies once more: «They are cowards! They complain about oil costs, however they do not need to assist us in Hormuz. They are cowards and we won’t neglect it”, the American president declared on social media. Three weeks after the start of the bombings on Iran, while the United Kingdom gives the green light to the USA to also use the bases “in assault missions”, three more American warships and thousands more marines are about to arrive in the Middle East: a sign of strength, in the intentions of the Republican administration, which can however become weakness, revealing that, beyond the continuous reassurances, the American army risks being dragged into a conflict much longer than the “5 or 6 weeks” announced by the White House.

And moreover, the request made by the Pentagon on Thursday to Congress to approve a 200 billion package to finance the conflict suggests a prolonged intervention. «I don’t want a ceasefire. You don’t have a ceasefire when you are literally annihilating the enemy,” Trump defined yesterday. And once more: «We might withdraw from Iran instantly and Tehran wouldn’t have the ability to rebuild its navy capabilities for at the very least ten years. But this isn’t a suitable scenario, the target isn’t regime change, what pursuits us – he mentioned – is that Iran by no means has nuclear weapons once more”.

Washington’s pressure on its allies is very strong and yesterday led to an initial result, although “too late” according to Trump. The UK government has authorized the US to use British bases to launch operations against Iranian targets controlling and attacking the Strait of Hormuz. While continental Europe attempts diplomatic mediation to avoid getting involved in the war, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer – as reported to the BBC by some Downing Street sources – has decided to expand the green light granted to the USA, which up to now has been limited to “operations to stop direct threats to British pursuits or lives”. The new authorization granted by London now also includes US “defensive operations” to neutralize Iranian positions and reopen Hormuz. The Starmer government has specified that there will be no direct involvement and that “the ideas underlying the British strategy to the battle stay unchanged”. But he had to endure threats from Iran: “Starmer is placing British lives in danger by permitting UK bases for use for aggression towards Iran,” said Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, stressing that Tehran “will train its proper to self-defence.”

Meanwhile, the Pentagon continues to strengthen military intervention against the Tehran regime. According to reports from US officials, Reuters and the Wall Street Journal, another 2,500 marines are about to go into action in the Middle East, adding to the 50,000 American soldiers already in the region: these are assault troops who can also be used in an intervention on the ground.

For the USA, at this stage, it’s essential to safe the Strait of Hormuz, if wanted additionally via the deployment of US forces on the Iranian coast, or by sending floor troops to the Iranian island of Kharg, a vital hub for 90% of Iranian oil exports. “I have no intention of deploying troops anywhere, but if I do, I certainly won’t say so in advance,” Trump mentioned, figuring out full effectively that any deployment of navy personnel on the bottom, even for brief missions, carries important political dangers: a Reuters-Ipsos ballot, which concluded on Thursday, exhibits that round 65% of Americans imagine Trump will order large-scale floor troops in Iran, whereas solely 7% help this resolution.